


ready, set, go

by sleeponrooftops



Series: lifeboats [9]
Category: The Almighty Johnsons
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-04-14
Updated: 2013-04-14
Packaged: 2017-12-08 12:18:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,346
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/761236
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sleeponrooftops/pseuds/sleeponrooftops
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Ty learns about manners, Anders learns about different kinds of love, and Mike learns to trust.</p>
            </blockquote>





	ready, set, go

“ _Mike, Mike, Mike_!”

 

Mike comes out of the kitchen and follows the sound of Ty’s little voice into the backyard.  He laughs and leans against the doorway in the back of the house, watching Ty clumsily smack his stick around, Anders deflecting his blows with another stick.  “Be careful!” he calls before disappearing back into the house to finish up their lunch.

 

When he appears a few minutes later balancing a tray, Ty giggles and drops his stick, running over, while Anders just smiles and goes over to where a blanket is laying in a heap.  He spreads it out on the ground, and Ty does his best to help before they’re all settling down and having a picnic.

 

“Can we go to the park?” Ty asks around a mouthful of sandwich.

 

“Don’t talk with your mouth full,” Mike chastises, and Ty snaps his mouth shut, looking at Mike with big eyes.  Anders laughs softly and reaches for his drink.  “And yes, we can.  Finish up your lunch, and then we’ll leave.”

 

“I’m gonna go on the swings!” Ty cries.

 

“I’ll push you,” Anders offers, “And then we can race on the slides.”

 

“Yeah!”

 

Mike watches his brothers fondly, and, before long, they’re back in the house cleaning up.  Mike sets Anders to help Ty with his shoes before he jogs upstairs and knocks on their mum’s door.  She calls him in, and he enters slowly, looking around until he spots her sitting on the windowsill with a book.  “Hey sweetie,” she says as she lowers the book, “Everything okay?”

 

“We’re going to the park.”

 

“Oh, I’ll come!” she exclaims, and Mike frowns.  “Unless you don’t want me to,” she amends, noting his expression.

 

“No, it’s fine,” he says with a shrug before leaving and heading back downstairs.  “Mum’s coming,” he says to his brothers, and while Anders only glances at him, Ty claps his hands together excitedly and goes over to the bottom step to wait for her.  When she comes downstairs, she lifts him in her arms, cooing at him until he giggles, and Mike just takes Anders’ hand and leads him outside.

 

They walk to the park, Mike and Anders ahead of their mum and Ty, and Anders is quiet until they’re almost there, and then he asks, “Why does mum love Ty more?”

 

“What makes you say that?” Mike asks, frowning.

 

“She does,” he says, shrugging one shoulder, “She was never home when I was little.”

 

Mike sighs, and he doesn’t respond until they’re at the park, and their mum is taking Ty over to the swings.  He takes both Anders’ hands and kneels down in front of him, squeezing his hands before saying, “Mum loves all of us very much.  She just forgot how to until Ty because then dad was gone.  She had him to love before that, and now she has Ty, but she loves all of us, I promise.  And besides, you’ve got me.”

 

“I know,” Anders says, brightening a little, “You’re the best big brother, Mike.”

 

“Yeah, well,” Mike says, smiling, “You’re a pretty cool little brother.”

 

“The coolest,” Anders says, matching Mike’s smile, and Mike tugs him forward, hugging him tightly before standing and leading him over to the swings.

 

When Ty sees him, he squirms until their mum stops pushing him, and then he exclaims, “Ands, Ands, push me!”

 

Anders gladly takes over, and Mike leaves them to take a swing for his own.  They spend a little while on the swings until Ty gets bored and starts kicking his feet, so Mike hops off and helps Anders slow him before he plucks him up off the swing and sets him on the ground.  “Race you!” Anders exclaims, setting off at a quick walk, and Ty screws his face up in determination and runs after him, little legs kicking up sand as he goes.

 

Mike watches them, smiling, until their mum lays a hand on his shoulder and says, “You’re good with them.”  He shrugs her off and starts to walk away until she sighs and says his name.

 

“ _What_?” he snaps at her, folding his arms over his chest as he turns.

 

“Will you come sit with me for a little bit?”  He doesn’t want to, but he doesn’t know how to refuse her, not yet, and so he nods, following her over to a bench.  They sit in silence for a few minutes until Mike sighs, and their mum says, “I’m sorry, Mike.  I never should have let your father—”

 

“I don’t have a father,” Mike cuts her off, sliding off the bench.  She goes to speak, but Mike turns, shaking his head.  “He _hit_ Anders,” he says through clenched teeth, “He’s not my father.”

 

Mike storms away, looking for his brothers until he finds Anders helping Ty up onto the playground.  He takes over, scooping Ty up and swinging him up onto the platform.  Ty giggles and claps his hands together when he lands.  Anders scrambles up after them, taking Ty’s hand and leading him toward the slides.  “Ready?” he says to his little brother, who squirms in his seat.

 

“Set!” Ty cries.

 

Anders looks back at Mike, who smiles and kneels behind them, a hand one each of their backs.  “ _Go_!” he yells, giving them each a push, and they fly down the slides, laughing loudly.

 

Hours pass as they run around on the playground, making up different games, until Anders starts to get bored and asks if they can go to the library.  Ty starts chanting something that sounds like the word library, and Mike laughs at him, helping him down onto the sand again.  “Mummy!” Ty exclaims, running over to her, “Librey, librey!”

 

“Do my little men want to go to the library?” she coos, catching Ty in her arms and lifting him into the air.  He giggles and squirms a little until she settles him against her hip, looking over at Mike and Anders, who are standing together, watching them, Anders’ little hand in Mike’s.  “Let’s go, then,” she says, her smile a little tight before she turns away, and Mike and Anders follow her from the park.

 

At the library, Anders wanders off to the animals section, and Mike takes one look at their mum and Ty before disappearing in search of something for his age.  Ty watches him go, lower lip trembling a little, and he looks up at their mum, face all scrunched up.  “Don’t cry, baby,” she coos, “What’s wrong?”

 

“Mikey and Ands leaved me,” he mumbles.

 

“Don’t worry, we’ll find them.”

 

They go off in search of Anders, who’s just leaving the animals section, and Ty opens his mouth to call out to him, but Anders puts a finger to his lips, and Ty snaps his mouth shut, giggling softly.  “Down, mummy,” he says, and she sets him on the ground, watching as he goes over to Anders, who takes his hand and leads him away, disappearing into the aisles.

 

They walk around until they find Mike curled up amongst a pile of beanbags, and he makes room for them.  Anders curls up next to him, Ty between them and half on them, and Mike puts his book away as Anders hands him his.  They sit like that, Mike reading through the book and showing off the pictures, until Ty falls asleep and Anders is getting drowsy.  Mike keeps reading, softer now, until Anders’ breathing slows, and then he carefully detaches himself, gets their books together, and goes to check them out before finding their mum.  “Ty and Anders are asleep,” he says, “Can you carry Ty please?”

 

“Of course, sweetie,” their mum says, following Mike through the library until they get to the beanbags.  Mike hands her the books before gathering Anders up in his arms, thankful he’s still little enough that he’s not too heavy.  He watches their mum pick up Ty, balancing him in her free arm, and his chest constricts a little with a brief flash of fear until she settles, Ty snug against her, and then they leave.


End file.
